The beginning will be the end of all things
by hoppinghamster
Summary: This is the last part in my trilogy, following on from One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter and Love lost and love's sacrifice. What will happen to Kathryn? Read this story for all the answers, it helps to read the other two first!
1. Introduction

**This story is the last in a trilogy, it helps if you read them in order, and you can find both the first and the second stories here on fanfiction .net **

**The first is **_**One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter.**_

**The second is **_**Love lost and love's sacrifice.**_

**And now I am pleased to bring you; -**

**THE BEGINNING WILL BE THE END OF ALL THINGS.**

**Introduction.**

"No" came the deep growl from the older of the two men as they stood facing each other in the dimly lit bar several star systems from Earth.

"No?" questioned the younger man "that's it? Just no?"

"Something wrong with your hearing Paris?" Chakotay snapped still keeping his gaze on the blue eyes of Voyagers ex-helmsman.

Tom took a step to circle around Chakotay still letting their eyes meet "I hear you Chakotay but what your saying means we have come this far out here for nothing, a waste, I ask you this does Kathryn _hear _you?"

"You know as well as I do a journey back to earth will take at least two months from our journey." Chakotay told him slamming the now empty beer bottle on the table before him.

"I get it two months we don't have." Stated a sarcastic Tom.

"Two months Kathryn don't have" Chakotay corrected him.

Tom's eyes flashed as he gazed into the darkened eyes of the older but now somewhat rouge Chakotay, the past seven months had taken it's toll on the brave Native American, it had taken it's toll on all of them, that Tom could not deny. They were all different people now, this journey had seen to that, and Kathryn, well Kathryn was fighting fit, literally. "Kathryn won't like it and you know it." Tom told his old friend slyly.

"Kathryn doesn't get a say, not this time." Chakotay insisted darkly.

"So this isn't about Kathryn or her life, this is about you and your woman?" Tom hissed in his own anger for the stubborn heart of the proud Native American.

Tom didn't get much chance to think or say anything else for Chakotay's fist hit him in the jaw sending him backwards and his world went dark.

(+)(+)(+)

Kathryn Elizabeth Janeway was now pacing a whole in the floor of the stolen Delta Flyer, the original one. It had been patched up and reconstructed so many times that it was a museum peace the day Kathryn had lead her crew into the Alpha Quadrant seventeen years ago. Now Kathryn and her band of merry men, and B'Elanna of course, had commandeered it and were flying it round the quadrant on the journey of a lifetime, a journey that made Voyagers seven year exile in the Delta Quadrant a walk in the park.

She was getting annoyed, really annoyed, Chakotay and Tom had been gone most of the morning, in some bar somewhere no doubt, the informants _always _seemed to hang out in some bar somewhere. She was pissed, real pissed, they had lost the only good lead they had three months ago and now, well now it felt like she was scratching in the dirt like a dog.

She was about to give up when the doors flung open, Kathryn's delicate fingers twisted around the knife she held in her belt, she was a girl of the twentieth century when it came to her chosen weapons, sure she carried a phaser, who didn't in their current line of work? The knife for Kathryn though was so much more accurate, so much more real. She heard the thud of something heavy and limp being flung onto the floor of the flyer and heavy footsteps entering behind it, and then the doors closed leaving Kathryn to make her move in the dark.

"Don't try it," growled her husband as he aimed his phaser at her head. Kathryn's blue eyes widened as he looked down to see the bulk of Tom Paris seemingly lifeless on the floor at her feet. She looked from Paris to her husband who still had his phaser aimed at her head.

She returned her knife to her belt and asked in a voice laced with concern "is he dead?" she didn't want to look at her friend lying there at her feet.

"No" replied Chakotay as he lowered his phaser throwing it on the console nearby. "He's just taking an involuntary nap."

Kathryn raised her eyebrows, turning to the med kit and removing the medical tricorder she scanned their helmsman "with a broken jaw and nose?" she asked tilting her hear to let her deep sapphire eyes met the jet black ones of her husbands. She issued him a crooked smile as he simply stared back at her. "You do this?" she asked him calmly as she examined the younger mans injuries with her narrowed eyes.

"He was talking too much," stated Chakotay coolly.

Running the dermal regenerator over their friends face Kathryn said in her husky voice "B'E will love you for this one." When Chakotay didn't reply to his wife she smiled and looked up at him saying, "I take it what ever he said you didn't like, which I am guessing means he was right?"

Chakotay eyed his wife for a second before turning silently from her to move toward the replicator in the compartment behind him. Kathryn shook her head as he replicated tea and calmly sat down to drink it. Knowing Tom would be out cold for a while she left him and came to sit beside the man she loved, as she joined him the light shone on his copper brown face showing his features, the scared and broken features. "Well?" she asked gently taking his hand in hers "did you meet this informant?"

"You wont like it." Was all Chakotay replied without looking at his wife "it's on earth."

"Earth?" gasped Kathryn in confusion "but where? How?"

"I don't know to both of those" he told her "but Seven of Nine does, or so I am told"

Kathryn's wide blue eyes blazed with understanding as she stared at the eyes of the man she loved. Turning too her Chakotay looked her in the eye and told her sternly "it's not worth the risk."

"So that's it? You don't want to go because you don't want to see Seven of Nine?" at her words Chakotay turned to look at the pale features of his sickly wife, her red lips and blue eyes shone deeply bright against her snow white skin. The white skin that showed the long deep, red scar running from her lip right down her jaw line, down her neck and deeply across her throat. It was that very scar that made Chakotay wince, the scar that daily reminded him of the disaster he very nearly lead them all into the day he blindly followed the lead of a so called helpful informant.

**I hope you all like this introduction to the last part of the trilogy.**

**Reviews and comments most welcome and in many ways needed. Thanks.**


	2. Phasers, daggers and trust

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 2**

**Phasers, daggers and trust.**

"We have got to get out of here." Kathryn said coolly as she stood to step over her still knocked out helmsman to take to controls of the flyer.

Chakotay eyed her for a second before he asked in a steady dark voice "your not going to take us to earth are you?"

In a deep husky voice without even looking at her husband she growled, "I smell Starfleet."

"Kathryn your insane, if your worried about a few ensigns out here than why do you plan to land directly into sector 001." With his words Chakotay came to stand besides her having retrieved his discarded phaser on the way to his wife. Pressing it against her back he whispered darkly in her ear "I can't let you do that."

With his words she stiffened, she knew he would do it given half the reason "Chakotay" she said in that way that only she could "you want it, I need it, you afraid of a little Borg charm?"

"No" growled Chakotay in an even deeper voice "I am afraid of you, I am afraid of what you are capable of and what you would do to get it." With those words he spun her round and looked deep in the pleading sapphire eyes, "I am afraid of what _zife _will do to you if he get his grubby little hands on you."

Kathryn raised one eyebrow as she met her eyes with her husband and said with a crooked smile "so you are going to blast my guts out instead?"

Chakotay grinded his teeth together but still did not lower his phaser till he said on so softly "spirits Kathryn, It's set to stun, I was going to knock you out."

Tilting her head to look at Tom where he lay knocked out on the floor after Chakotay beat him up she then looked back at the loving eyes of her husband "the modern way I am sure." She said placing her delicate hand on his where he held the phaser to her guts.

For a second Chakotay didn't know what she meant and then realisation dawned on him as she smiled and he lowered the phaser saying, "I only knock _really_ annoying people out the old fashioned way."

"Well it's nice to know I am not as annoying as Tom Paris," she said in a scoffing voice as she sunk into the pilot's chair and he lowered the phaser.

"Well either way we better get B'Elanna." Chakotay told her as he leaned across her and let his dark, lean fingers ride over the console.

(+)(+)(+)

Back on Earth President Zife, President of the federation was restless, "I want that woman," he snapped at his aid.

The poor ensign staggered around after the president carrying a load of PADDs in her hands "sir" she stammered nervously "She was last seen the other side of Deep Space 9."

"With her husband in toe no doubt?" asked the president but did not wait for an answer to his seemingly rhetorical question as he continued "this federation will not rest until that menace in shackles and at my feet begging me for mercy."

"Your men nearly had her sir," stammered his terrified aid.

"_Nearly _Ensign is not good enough, I want Kathryn Janewayand I want her _now!"_ with those words Zife flung the PADD he was holding at his aid forcing her to stagger backwards as he turned to corner and left the dumbfounded ensign alone in the corridor.

(+)(+)(+)

"B'Elanna is coming back." Kathryn told her husband as she sipped her mid day coffee and watched him pour over star charts a week old "and they won't be any good to you." She retorted.

Before Chakotay had any chance to reply Kathryn tapped the console a few times and immediately the shimmering blue light brought with it the half-klingon engineer, covered in blood.

Kathryn rose from her chair and placed her mug down slowly to look at the younger woman. "P'tak wouldn't talk." Growled B'Elanna in return to the stunned look on the older woman's face.

"So you killed him?" Kathryn asked steadily in a deep voice.

"No, just messed him up a little, you know." Retorted the half-klingon just as her eyes fell on her still knocked out husband on the centre of the floor.

"He kind of did the same to your husband" Kathryn told her old friend showing little concern as she returned to the drinking of her coffee.

B'Elanna eyed Kathryn slowly before saying stiffly "you let him?"

Kathryn once more lowered her coffee mug and met the half-klingon in the eye saying "I am not his babysitter, besides I wasn't down there, Starfleet trash was littering the place."

"He'll live," retorted Chakotay as he came into view to meet the angry, blazing eyes of his old friend.

What happened next happened so fast none of them even had time to think of it. B'Elanna drew a phaser set to kill and pointed it at Chakotay. In return the strong native American drew went to draw his own phaser but was kicked when caught of balance upon realising it still lay on the console beside his wife who had just drawn her knife and was now holding it to the throat of the half-klingon. In a second B'Elanna dropped her phaser allowing Chakotay to stand and point her own phaser at B'Elanna. The three stood that way for a while, nobody dared move or call the bluff of the other, in the last seven months the four friends had learnt desperate times called for desperate measures. After the stale mate had gone on long enough Chakotay lowered his phaser handing it back to B'Elanna who took it as quick as a flash and pushed Kathryn from her. All three stiffly watched one another as Kathryn and B'Elanna both returned their weapons to their rightful places.

"So?" B'Elanna asked breaking the silence "where is it?"

"Earth" growled an unhappy Kathryn.

"What?" yelled B'Elanna "Sector 001? Zife will have her before we get within ten light years of Earth, and you know it Chakotay!"

"To make it worse, it's Seven of Nine who is the connection on Earth." Came the voice of Tom as he groaned sitting up from where he lay.

"Seven?" Questioned B'Elanna "can we trust her?"

It was the question all wondered, Kathryn's life hung on finding the answer but if they were wrong they all knew what Zife would do to her, to them all was far worse than letting Kathryn die peacefully in Chakotay's arms.


	3. To live, die or be redeemed

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 3**

**To live, die or be redeemed.**

Kathryn Janeway lay in her bed in a small back compartment of the Delta Flyer. Tom had been spending the last two hours arguing with Chakotay and B'Elanna about weather or not they should take the ship, and Kathryn, to Earth. Kathryn had realised early on in the _discussion _that she and her opinion was not welcome, nor did she feel in the mood to fight like a pack of wild animals the way they were. She was just turning the page of her ancient novel she was getting into when her husband came almost storming into the room looked at her and simply asked "well?" in a deep almost menacing growl

Kathryn looked up at him almost shocked with her wide blue eyes which she was now narrowing at him "well?" she asked in much confusion "well what?"

At the look of set confusion in his wife's sickly face his heart sank and pain filled his soul. "I was wondering where you disappeared to?" he asked her in a more gentile, loving tone as he came to join her sitting on the bed.

Kathryn silently and slowly picked up the bookmark he had made her a few months back, placed it in her book and silently placed the book on the bedside table to her left before saying softly "I left, Chakotay I can't back you up on this I disagree with you."

Chakotay watched his wife closely for a minute and reminded himself just how much he loved her, admired her and respected her. Her courage and determination had got them all this far over the many years and he loved her for it. "It's not about Seven." He told her.

"Then what is it?" she asked as she watched her husband patiently.

"Zife" was all Chakotay said in a deep cold voice.

Kathryn thought for a second and then took her husbands copper brown hand in her own pearly white hand "Zife is old, he has been president for a long time, since the dominion war he's lost it."

Chakotay felt his heart burn with anger, "Zife hasn't lost it, he's getting stronger and you are getting weaker."

"There are different kinds of strength Chakotay." Kathryn whispered heavily.

Chakotay wrapped his arm around his wife and pulled her to lie on his chest "this isn't the marriage we wanted." He said leaving Kathryn unsure if it was actually a question or merely a statement.

"We have each other" came her reply.

Chakotay stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head, for a few minutes the husband and wife lay together on their bed in silence. It was Chakotay who broke that silence firstly asking his wife "do you _want _to find him Kathryn?"

"Who? Zife?" she asked in such a cracked voice Chakotay knew she was crying though he couldn't see her face where she lay and he knew she would never admit it.

Giving her back a gentle rub he said deeply almost bracing himself for what was to come, as he said "No, your son."

It wasn't as bad a reaction from his wife as he had expected, she stiffened a little and set her jaw, and Chakotay could feel it. "Do you?" she spat at him in a stiff response.

Chakotay let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and he said lovingly "Seven months ago we sat arm in arm at Tom and B'Elanna's house laughing and joking the way friends do, the night you gave them the painting."

"What is the point?" demanded Kathryn feeling frustrated but with what she didn't know.

"While you were asleep that evening I told Tom and B'Elanna you are sick, dying even." Chakotay continued to tell her calmly.

"I know." She replied stiffly, she still wasn't sure how she felt about her husband sharing her most private information while she was asleep; she was a very private woman after all.

"I told them there was a cure for you, which there is, but we have now spent the last Seven months searching the galaxy for a lead to this said cure, and I didn't fully explain it to them but still they risk their lives to come with us, because they care."

Kathryn turned her deep blue eyes to look at him and for the first time in a long time Chakotay saw real emotion there, tears and pain laced her face. As she took his hands in hers she whispered "I need you, I need them" It was so quite you could have easily have not heard her words and Chakotay knew of the great courage and strength it would have taken her to say those words. "In answer to your question, no, no I don't want to find my son."

Chakotay looked deep in to her eyes to find some hint of her emotions all he saw was pain. "You want to die then?" he asked her softly as he stroked her hand with his thumb where he held her hands tight.

"No" she replied slowly "I am just not sure I can face the pain of my son alone."

"You are not alone Kathryn." Her husband insisted as she stroked the side of her neck her she had been attacked a few months earlier and her scar still shone a garish red "in any of this you are not alone."

"Nor are you." She relined taking his hand from her neck "this isn't easy for you and your not alone."

"Talk to them Kathryn, talk to me." he begged, she knew he was begging now for his eyes pierced her soul.

With a heavy sigh she turned from him "since Zife sent his men after us, after me, you have blamed yourself, and your heart has been bitter."

Chakotay watched her, to prove a point he lowered his hand to her belt and removed the razor sharp knife she kept there at all times. Her eyes flamed with anger as he did so but he kept a steady gaze on her as he said in conviction "you my dear have hardened, sometimes I don't know you any more, you're a dangerous woman, to all of us, rouge and ruthless."

Kathryn wanted to be angry, she wanted to hate him for saying that but she couldn't for she knew he was right. "You aren't much better, look what you did to Tom, for disagreeing with you!" she insisted "and look at you, threatening to knock me out with your phaser for wanting to fly the ship to Earth, Chakotay your children are on Earth. Our life is on Earth. Seven months is a hell of a long time, this is the only lead me have to find it."

"So even though you don't want to find your son you will become the scourge of the universe to find a data storage device that may or may not lead us to a outlawed group of Cardassian hybrids, which lets face it we don't even know if your son is with them of not." Chakotay was angry now and he showed it.

"How dare you? Hybrid?" was all his wife hissed back at him.

"Kathryn" Chakotay begged, "we are already marked men, you're the federations most wanted, we shouldn't have done what we did."

"No we shouldn't" his wife agreed "but Zife had it coming"

"Kathryn you play with fire and your bound to get burnt." He whispered his own eyes filling with tears as he brushed his fingertips over the scar he was referring to.

"Or cut?" came her cold response to his analogy of fire.

"Exactly" he replied.

Kathryn shook her head at him and took the knife from his hands to place back in her belt, "this isn't about me living or dying Chakotay" she whispered with pain in her eyes "it's much more than that now, this is about what's right."

"Kathryn?" Chakotay asked "you can't redeem yourself for some guilt you feel you carry by freeing the federation from Zife."

"Watch me" replied his stubborn wife as she stood from the bed and left the room to enter the _'bridge'_ of the flyer. Leaving him sat alone in their bedroom as his heart sank with pain and fear. For Kathryn somehow she felt somewhat more peaceful and alive when she could feel she sat in the command centre of the vessel she was flying in.


	4. We need to talk

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 4**

**We need to talk.**

Kathryn Janeway sat in the pilot's chair on the Delta Flyer looking out at the stars in the view screen before her. She had a lot the think about; the words of her husband plagued her mind, was he right? Had she changed and become a ruthless dangerous woman? Was she a rouge outlaw?

Most people thought the torture she endured at the hands of the Cardassians at the time of the dominion war would change her. Maybe it did, just a little too subtlety, but too subtle for most people to notice.

Then there was the death of her father and Justin her fiancé, was that enough to tip her over the edge? Maybe for a short time but she came out of that with the help of her little sister Phoebe. The loss of the unborn child she carried that day, did that change the great Kathryn Janeway? Who knows, for Kathryn the best way to cope and survive was to ignore any pain she felt for that loss, and to deny the Childs existence, even to herself.

Then there was Mark, did she love Mark? Who knows? Kathryn wasn't even sure she knew, not anymore. Mark was a good man, a safe man. Mark made her feel loved but did she love him? That didn't matter now because she left him, or he left her? Who knows? Who decides who left who? The caretaker saw to the end of their relationship, or did she do that? Sure the caretaker threw her, her crew and Chakotay and his crew 70 thousand light years from earth but she, _she _gave the order to destroy the caretakers array and with it the quickest and easiest way home. She condemned one hundred and fifty people to a seventy-year journey across unknown space just so they could return home, her way, and the Starfleet way. So maybe she did leave Mark first.

Mark waited for her, sure he did, he loved her, but she didn't wait long enough. On her first communication with her loved ones on Earth came the news from Mark he was happily married, be then wasn't she? To her first officer the strappingly handsome Commander Chakotay?

As Kathryn sat staring out of the main viewer she felt so much pain, all _that _had changed her, all of it was painful and had contributed to her being the woman she was today, maybe a little rouge, a little rough around the edges but could you blame her? The story of Kathryn's life was only just beginning, or maybe it was ending? Who knows?

Her deep thoughts into the pain of her past were rudely interrupted by the arrival of her husband closely followed by her dear friends the Torres-Paris', Tom and B'Elanna.

"Kathryn" Chakotay said softly taking a defensive stance before her ensuring the exit was blacked "we need to talk"

Kathryn's blue eyes darted from Chakotay to Tom and B'Elanna and back again, slowly she raised to her full height which really wasn't very tall, placed her hands on her hips and said in her sharp, husky command voice "Oh? We do, do we?"

"Kathryn please" Tom asked softly "none of us want this to become a fight"

At the softness of Toms words she relaxed just a little but still kept her gaze on Chakotay before saying "I have got things to do Chakotay, what's this all about?"

"It's just to talk about things, were worried." He said coolly but still held her gaze.

"Worried." She repeated in a slightly unconvinced tone as she nodded at him.

"Yea, like we want to know why this data storage device is so important and who exactly we are hoping it will lead us to." Said B'Elanna in a slightly harsher tone of voice than she had intended.

"Are you saying you're not with me?" Kathryn asked as she flicked her menacing blue stare to the half-klingon who was doing an excellent job at keeping herself able to stand her ground.

"No body said that." Tom but in but still Kathryn stared at B'Elanna stiffly.

"Kathryn, Tom and I have risked life and limb this last seven months to search the Alpha Quadrant for a cure for you, I haven't seen Miral in those seven months and Chakotay hasn't seen his children either, we can't tell anybody where we are because now we have Zife on our backs. Were feeling slightly blind in this" B'Elanna stated in a slightly more begging and gentle tone than Kathryn had expected to hear from the Half-Klingon engineer.

"We all have had to make sacrifices, if you don't like the plan you can leave." Was all Kathryn responded with.

B'Elanna insisted feeling her friend wasn't listening or understanding, "Kathryn, it's not that we don't like the plan, it that we don't know the plan."

Kathryn's blue eyes looked her old friend up and down for a second before she said calmly "To find my son and with him a cure." She chose to ignore the slightly shocked and yet confused glance Tom and B'Elanna gave each other before for glancing to a seemingly unsurprised Chakotay and then back to Kathryn just in time for her to add "Oh and to take down Zife while we are at it."

Before B'Elanna or Tom had chance to question or say anything else Chakotay spat, "that's it? That's your big plan?"

"well what did you expect?" she retorted back at her husband.

"Kathryn we-" began Tom softly before stopping and glancing at Chakotay who was looking at his wife with anger before he tentatively added "that is to say B'Elanna and I were not aware you had a son until seven months ago when Chakotay told us of him and explained he carries the cure for you, the only way to save your life."

Kathryn simply stared back at Tom before she said anything else, the room hung in silence as all looked at Kathryn who simply stared motionless back at Tom.

"The point is if we don't know who he is or anything about it, how are we going to find him?" B'Elanna butted in to ask.

Kathryn felt as though her heart was about to clench, she knew her day would come, the day when she would have to tell them of Daryl, her son, tell them of where he came from, who he is and why she doesn't see him or even know where to find him. She knew that day would come but always wondered if it had to be now, did it really have to be that day? She wasn't ready, not for that, not to talk of that? As she sank vulnerable and broken into the pilots chair once more she looked with fear into the waiting eyes of her friends she knew she would have to explain what on earth was going on but could she do it? Could she tell them alone? She knew deep down inside of her it was that and that alone that was turning her slowly, changing her in to the dangerous woman Chakotay had told her she was.


	5. The right to know

**I know some of you have been a little unsure about this story, feeling the characters aren't right, it doesn't make sense and you have no idea what Zife has to do with it. My reply to that is, yes you are right, but it will all be revealed, things have happened over the last seven months for them to mean this is the situation, but it will all be revealed soon and the previous stories will be brought to a close in this one as well. **

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 5**

**The right to know.**

Chakotay silently watched his wife and for the first time in months he saw a tiny hint of who she was, of the beautiful, vulnerable, scared and yet so determined Kathryn he fell in love with all those years ago. His heart burned with her pain as she stared silently at the floor. Slowly and carefully she lifted her face, looked B'Elanna right in the eye and said in such a cracked voice nobody would dare question she was in pain "there is no plan, I am running scared."

B'Elanna crossed her brow and looked down at where the older woman sat before she looked at Chakotay and demanded, "What is she talking about?"

"There was no plan," Kathryn shouted "there never was"

"Kathryn" whispered Chakotay in love as he knelt to take the hands of his wife "we need a plan, we can't go on like this, were fighting each other, we no longer trust each other, and none of us can work out why we are doing what we are doing."

Kathryn looked widely up at him before she told him "all we set out to do was find Daryl"

"Your son?" asked Tom.

"Yes" nodded Kathryn as tears poured down her pale cheeks "The doctor told me I was dying, the poison Seven gave me is slowly killing me."

"And your son has a cure?" Tom asked trying to understand it all in his mind.

"A bone marrow transplant form my offspring is the only cure." Admitted Kathryn.

"And your son, Daryl he's your only offspring?" came Toms next question to clarify.

"Yes." Kathryn mumbled as she began to angrily pace the flyers room.

B'Elanna and Tom looked to Chakotay who was looking at Kathryn with a slight look of sadness "Kathryn when you asked us to come with you to find him we did without question because we love you, we did what you asked, but Tom and B'Elanna don't know anything about Daryl, I never told them that, that's for you to tell them."

Kathryn turned and rounded on her husband as she snapped angrily "You know, and you still came. What is it too much now? Can you not bare to face my son for you know what he is what was it you called him? Hybrid?"

Chakotay tired to take his wife's hands to calm her but she pulled away. "Kathryn please I don't want to go back there, to become that angry maquis warrior again." To told her truthfully "and I don't want you to become a ruthless outlaw.

"Outlaw?" asked Kathryn but at those words her hardened exterior faded once more as she let her deep sapphire eyes lock with his jet back eye as she told him "we weren't outlaws until Zife put a price on my head, I never set out to be an outlaw scratching in the dirt but I am a fighter Chakotay."

"Does Zife know you have a son?" Tom asked her.

Slowly Kathryn turned her attention back to the younger couple "well he knows what your dad knows." Came her sly sarcastic reply.

"Don't you dare say my dad is one of _them_" spat a now angry Tom.

"He is Starfleet isn't he?" she retorted back.

"Kathryn!" interrupted Chakotay "look I am not saying you haven't suffered at the hands of those who claim to be Starfleet but not all of Starfleet is Trade.

"I never said they were but every mission report, every diagnostic could be filtered back to Zife if he wanted it to be." She reminded them all "The Trade aren't any worse than the Maquis were." Kathryn added.

"Hang on just a minute!" shouted B'Elanna "we didn't try to slash the throats of innocent people just because we felt like it.

"Didn't we?" asked Chakotay so that all eyes were now on him. "The Trade is only Starfleet's finest, the best, their black ops team. In other words, rouge outlaws just like we were, how many Cardassian did we kill simply for being Cardassian?"

Choosing to ignore Chakotay's last question Kathryn added "secret black ops team, with a direct line to Zife himself. That's a little bit different to a band of merry freedom fighters."

"So we _are_ going to Earth?" asked Tom steadily "in the hope to walk into Starfleet's highest security prison and politely ask to talk with Seven of Nine? Kathryn Zife has made you the federations most wanted"

"Well we are not" Kathryn told them "Mike is"

"What? Your going to scare him into doing it for you?" retorted B'Elanna.

"You've got an idea lets hear it?" replied the husky voice of Kathryn.

"Kathryn, nobody is having a go at you, it's just very hard for us, we set out on a journey we didn't know what we had got ourselves in to, we thought you and Chakotay knew what you were doing, I think Chakotay thought you know what you were doing." Tom told her. "Here we are Seven months on with nothing to show for it but a stolen almost dead vessel, you still nearly dieing and Zife after you, after us and Chakotay pointed out to us earlier only you and Chakotay seem to know why."

"Great thanks Chakotay, real helpful" she spat at him.

"They have a right to know Kathryn." Chakotay insisted, "They should know why Zife is so keen to stop you finding you son."

It was then that Tom asked her the questions she had been dreading "Why don't you know where your son is? How old is he? Tom asked.

Kathryn didn't give a reply at first she simply stared at Chakotay shaking her head. All eyes were on her. She began to steadily pace the room, how could she tell them what pained her the most to admit. She was scared, she had always been scared. Kathryn Janeway wasn't the ruthless dangerous woman they were all saying she had become; she was a frightened, sick older lady who had seen some dark things in her life that was all.

"Zife wants to kill me." Kathryn said steadily "he wanted me out the way during the aftermath of the dominion war, he wanted me away from the federation so I wouldn't reveal the _truth_."

Chakotay stopped his menacing look to stare at his wife, he had never heard her say this, and never so clearly had she explained the issue with Zife.

"Did you know this from the beginning?" Asked Tom slowly.

"Zife and I, we have shall we say met." Kathryn stated in such a cold voice that all three in the room dared not ask any more.

Even Chakotay was unaware of this development in the plot, he knew Zife wanted to kill Kathryn, he had realised that the same time as Kathryn, or so he thought. He had no idea she had ever met Zife.

"You knew about this?" B'Elanna's voice cut across Chakotay's thoughts as she stared at him.

Slowly looking form his old friend and apprentice to his wife he truthfully shook his head and said darkly "no"

Kathryn stood to her full height, removed the knife from her belt and threw it on the table before saying, "I have been taken in and used by the Trade and I didn't even know it, we all have! I will not become one of them."


	6. The truth of Cardassia Prime

**Sorry for the long delay in this arriving, hopefully it can begin to elp people understand better, part of the point is your not supposed to understand straight away, please stick with it!**

**I am aware that the event's of this story (e.g. Zife is still president of the federation seventeen years after the end of the Dominion war) do not correspond with the event as told in official Star Trek Novels but lets just go with it… none of the events I have really fit directly with the novels. **

**The beginning will be the end of all things**

**Chapter 6**

**The truth of Cardassia Prime**

"Kathryn?" Chakotay asked slowly as he watched his wife throw the knife on the table before her. Chakotay really had no idea what she was talking about and by the look on his two friends faces he could see neither did they.

"Don't you get it Chakotay?" Kathryn asked him almost annoyed as she looked into his eyes and bed his jet black and piercing stare.

"Not really Kathryn, care to explain?" he replied darkly taking her hand trying to reassure her.

Pulling her hand from his she snapped at him "can I have a word?"

"You can have many, the floor is yours we are all ears." Came B'Elanna's sly drawl trying to get at the point that she too had no idea what was going on.

Kathryn looked angrily as the stern half-klingon the two woman's eyes bet in a blaze of fury and Kathryn knew then not to mess with the angry half-klingon. Turning back to her confused husband she hissed "in private?"

"Oh don't mind us!" B'Elanna called after the two as Kathryn led her husband out of the room into a more private place to talk.

"Shut up Lanna!" was what the two heard Tom shout as they let the doors swish shut behind them.

"What is wrong with you?" snapped Chakotay as he rounded on his wife as soon as the doors had closed.

"Everything Chakotay!" she yelled at him "Look around us, looked at you!" she told him as she gestured around the flyer, then Kathryn let her shoulders slump and her heart softened as she whispered "I don't want to be that ruthless woman you think I am."

Chakotay's heart sank, his words hadn't solely been about her, taking her hands reassuringly as she looked up into his eyes her brushed the stray strands of hair from her face and lovingly told her "I don't think you are any more than the rest of us." As he saw tears begin to form in his beautiful wife's sapphire eyes she turned her face from him, taking her chin in his hand he made her look at him "Kathryn, I mean your right, look at us all, we are not the same people who set out on this journey to save your life."

"No," she said sharply as she pulled away from him.

"Kathryn, Zife scares me." he insisted but still she refused to look at him.

"He's all talk!" she yelled as she looked out at the view screen at the stars beyond.

"Are you sure about that?" Chakotay demanded as he rested his stern hands on her shoulders and forced her to turn to look at him. Chakotay's heart pounded as he look at her beautiful face and saw the still angry scar across her throat, brushing his fingertips over the scar she never talked of her whispered softly with a deep love for her "Kathryn three months ago we nearly lost you to Zife and the Trade."

"I am not even sure Zife is in charge of the Trade any more." she told him pulling from her husband.

"Kathryn the fact he has a black op's offshoot of his own makes him a dangerous man." Insisted Chakotay.

Kathryn rubbed the scar on her neck with her hand before she told him, "You don't have to tell me twice."

Chakotay watched her for a second he knew there was more to this, there was more to what Zife wanted and he knew his wife knew. "Damn you Kathryn!" he hissed as his eyes locked with her set unwavering blue orbs.

"What?" she retorted back.

"There is something your not telling me, something that none of this makes sense for us, but you seem to know, you _knew _Zife was after you, you _knew_ that if Owen told him you were going in search of your son that Zife would send a hunting party after you."

Chakotay was not letting his gaze on his wife fall she stared back at him with her set jaw not wanting to let anything pass her perfected command mask, for any commander it would be enough to hide her darkest secrets, but for her husband, ex-maquis captain and her ex-first officer of seven years there was no way she could hide from him. "Zife and I met." She told him softly when she realised he was not going to let up on his stare.

"So you said" he informed her pressing for more, he had worked this woman for too long, nothing got past him anymore.

"Zife doesn't want me to find Daryl." She sighed.

Chakotay watched her for a second and then asked "are you telling me Zife knew of Daryl before Owen told him?

"Yes" she whispered "Zife is corrupt, and always has been, it was too easy for him and his administration, did you never question how he lead us from the dominion war so easily? How the Maquis were reduced to nothing but a band of broken prisoners of war or lost Seventy thousand light years from the war?"

"Kathryn?" Chakotay warned "are you sure these are founded accusations?"

Kathryn's head snapped up to look at her husband "Chakotay I never made an accusation, I asked you a question."

"A loaded question." Insisted Chakotay. When Kathryn didn't respond other then to raise her eyebrows Chakotay sighed and asked "Kathryn does you mind telling us what the hell is going on?"

"That is a very good question." Came B'Elanna's voice as she came storming into the room sheepishly followed by Tom "the best question I have heard in a long time, she shows up on my doorstep straight from prison, no explanation about how she knew where we lived or anything, she knew where you lived Chakotay and we didn't tell her. Seven tries to kill her, only she didn't die and then we are told she is terminally ill. _Then_ there comes the news there is a cure, but to get it we must find a long lost son none of us ever knew existed. And now here we are seven months later, flying around in the Delta Flyer, the stolen Delta Flyer I might add, looking for this son she has no idea where he is, with Zife trying to kill us. We are running from the law, we're living the life of a cargo smugglers and she can't even be bothered to tell us what she knows!" accused B'Elanna. All eyes fell on Kathryn, Tom looked at the woman he respected, he could not deny anything his wife had said.

"I'll tell you what is going on, Zife is falling the walls of power he has built up are falling, I'll tell you what I know of Zife, I have met him, twice." Kathryn told them refusing to look into the now angry eyes of Chakotay, "I met Zife on Cardassia prime many years ago," turning to Chakotay she took a deep breath and gave him the most shocking news of all "he was present at the birth of my son."


	7. Are we in or not?

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 7.**

**Are we in or out?**

"What?" hissed Chakotay as he took hold of his wife's arm and tried to search her eyes for an explanation.

Before Kathryn had any chance to answer B'Elanna cut in "wait hang on, you had your son on Cardassia Prime?"

Kathryn turned to the Torres-Paris's and asked in a slow husky voice "how many half-Cardassian and half-human's do you know of?"

"None" snapped B'Elanna almost in disgust at the idea as she looked to her husband who was watching Kathryn with a strange expression on his face before he said slowly "your son is half-Cardassian?" all the while he kept never blinking eye contact with the older woman.

"Yes" nodded Kathryn "I was captured by the cardassians many years ago and held in a Cardassian prison for eighteen months."

"And during that time you gave birth to a son?" asked Tom almost in shock, he knew of her being captured, he never knew it was for that long and he certainly knew nothing of a son.

"What was Zife doing there?" demanded Chakotay trying to get back to the important new piece of information.

"I don't know" was all Kathryn supplied.

"But your sure it was him?" asked Tom.

"Yes" nodded Kathryn sadly.

"Wait hold up." Snapped B'Elanna. "Your son, the son we are trying to track down is half-Cardassian?"

"Yes" came Kathryn's agreement as she looked the half-Klingon in the eye.

"And you never thought to tell us this?" B'Elanna asked.

"Because it's not easy." Sighed Kathryn.

"I can't believe it, do you Chakotay? Seven months you two have had us out here and all this while I have assumed we are searching for a _human_ man when in fact we are looking for a _cardassian_! There is a huge difference!" she growled. "And next Chakotay your going to tell us you _knew _this was a cardassian we are talking about?"

"Of course he knew." Insisted Tom "they both did, it's us that have been the tag along man power."

"It wasn't like that." Insisted Kathryn.

"What was it like then?" asked B'Elanna in a way that showed Kathryn she meant what she was saying.

Exhausted Kathryn let a heavy breath and said softly "need I point out it was not I who asked you to come on this mission with me, I wanted to do this alone. Chakotay insisted he come too and invited you to join us."

All eyes then fell on Chakotay "well I knew you wouldn't want to do this if you knew Kathryn's son was half-cardassian."

"Everyone just calm down for a minute!" shouted Tom "are we going to Earth or not? And if we are how are we going to get into Starfleet's penal colony to talk with Seven of Nine?"

"Mike is going to talk to her for us." Said Chakotay simply.

"Start talking Kathryn, what do you know of Zife?" Snapped B'Elanna, "this is a mess and if you don't start explaining it to me I am going to leave on earth."

"Your quite welcome to do that." Added Kathryn "Tom set a course for Earth, it seems your wife is leaving us.

"Kathryn" hissed Chakotay as he took her arm. "What _do _you know of Zife?"

"I know he is dangerous, he planned my son into existence."

"What?" gasped Tom; looking from Chakotay to Kathryn he said cautiously "I assume you didn't consent to having this son?" The stern glare that he got from Kathryn in return was enough to confirm his feelings. "So what your saying is Zife had a hand in your capture all those years ago just so you would produce a half-cardassian son?"

"That Tom is exactly what I am saying." Nodded Kathryn.

"So that's why Zife is after us now, he doesn't want you to find your son?" clarified B'Elanna as he wide brown eyes stared deeply at Kathryn.

All the way through this conversation Chakotay was getting more and more agitated in his stance, Kathryn could feel it but right then she needed to ignore her husbands anger, the Torres-Paris's deserved an explanation she also knew she needed to get it out, to say it and explain it for herself "I don't know why Zife needed a half-cardassian child but that mission all those years ago, the one I was captured during I know Zife commissioned it, of course he wasn't president then but he had influence."

"That why you were allowed to be testing a cloaking device, Zife's influence with the right people." Growled Chakotay.

"Yes"-agreed Kathryn.

"So you go to Cardassia prime alone with a faulty cloaking device and are captured." Whispered B'Elanna "so where does the child come into it?"

"Oh come on Lanna! You know what the cardassians do to their female prisoners!" Tom hissed at his wife feeling this might not be what Kathryn was wanting to discuss there and then.

A look of realization dawned on B'Elanna's face and she looked at Kathryn with caring and compassion, a look the hardened half-klingon had not shown in a while. "So who wanted your son Zife or the cardassians?"

"I think my son was an unfortunate-" began Kathryn but then stopped to tilt her head and put her hands on her hips "what was his father said?" she ask to nobody in particular "an unfortunate side effect." At those words Kathryn knew Chakotay's fists were clenched and he was about ready to rip the head off anybody who dared annoy him.

"That's-" began Tom but stopped for he couldn't find the words.

"Barbaric?" supplied Chakotay in an angry growl.

"So what are we doing out here?" asked B'Elanna "surely we should head to Cardassia prime and find your some there."

"We would" said Kathryn "but he's not there"

"How do you know?" asked Tom.

Kathryn let he blue eyes meet with his and said calmly "how many half-human cardassians do you think there are? Zife wouldn't keep him on cardassia prime, it –"

"Kathryn how do you know Zife has anything to do with your son?" asked Chakotay stiffly.

"Because I know he bought him from the cardassians." Kathryn told them sharply "and I know he wants me never to meet him, I also know there is a data storage device that will tell us where he is and all about him."

"Which is the data storage device Tom and Chakotay just found out is on Earth, with Seven." Continued B'Elanna.

"Well no, I have no idea where it is, all we found out is the Borg knew where it was therefore I we are assuming Seven knows, so we want to cure me, we need to find my son, to find my son we need it, to find it we need to talk to Seven of Nine." Stated Kathryn as coolly as if she was talking about a walk in the park.

"Does anybody else here remember that it was Seven who made you sick in the first place? And not only that but if we find your son the president of the federation will kill us?" Tom reminded them.

"I am hoping in finding my son we will bring Zife down." Said Kathryn in her usual husky voice.

"Do you have any idea what you are proposing?" Chakotay snapped at her through worry.

Kathryn turned her blue eyes on her husband, looked him straight in his jet black eyes and asked stiffly "are you with me or are you against me Chakotay?"

Chakotay was taken aback for a second; he had not expected that question. As he watched her he saw how frail she was and how damn hard it must be for her to keep strong. Taking a quick glance at Tom and B'Elanna he knew they were confused, angry and worn out but they would do anything for Kathryn, they all would, that's why they had come this far this last seven months, that's why they were turning aggressive rouges, because they would stop at nothing to save Kathryn. Chakotay had to admit he kind of like it; it felt like the early days of the Maquis. With a heavy intake of breath Chakotay stepped closer to his wife, took her hands in his and reassuringly told her "always my dear, always am I with you."

Kathryn smile up at him, his heart pounded, it felt like many years since her beautiful crooked smile graced her lips. Flashing his own dimples at her he whispered into her ear "can we try to do this without loosing the essence of who we are, with out loosing our love?"

Kathryn merely took his lips in hers and wrapped her arms tightly around her husband neck. Tom nudged his cross-looking wife with a stupid grin on his face say "Hay Lanna are we in?"

B'Elanna turned to Tom and snapped, "of course we're in flyboy but don't expect a kiss like that, just take this flyer to Earth without getting us seen." Looking slightly hurt Tom left to take the pilots seat as Chakotay and Kathryn turned to look at B'Elanna both with smiles on their faces "god help me" was all B'Elanna said as she shook her head at her old friends, but she had to smile, it was a good feeling for them all right then, one they hadn't felt in a while. They were going to Earth.


	8. In earth's orbit

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 8.**

**In Earth's orbit.**

"Ok we are coming in now" Tom announced to a pacing Kathryn as he pressed the buttons on the navigation console before him.

"I sure hope you know what your doing" Kathryn snapped as she rounded on the younger helmsman peering over his shoulder where he sat.

Tom swivelled his chair to look at her and shrugged saying, "well it all depends what mike say's"

"Are you saw we can trust him?" she asked as she raised to her eyes to look at the glorious blue and green orb lit up by the shining stars in the view screen in front of them.

"Chakotay seems sure." Tom reminded her.

"Chakotay trust's him with his life and so do I." Came B'Elanna' reassuring voice as she came to stand beside the older woman so that she too could admire Earth in the view screen.

"Well Tom how can we argue with that?" Kathryn smiled down at the younger man, "they know him, if he is good enough for Chakotay he's good enough for me."

"Well then let's get this show on the road." He said with his won smile as he spun round to take the Delta Flyer closer to Earth.

"No fancy business Tom we need to get out of here in one piece." Kathryn told him patting him on his shoulder with a hit of sarcasm in her voice. She knew Tom and his reckless habits when it came to flying.

"Trust me, captain proton knows what he's doing." He retorted which made his wife snort. Kathryn was about to offer her own retort when the whole flyer jolted and Kathryn was nearly sent off balance. Grabbing on to the bulkhead she held herself up just in time to see Tom's frantic hands working the console.

"What was that?" Kathryn demanded as B'Elanna took the seat at the tactical station.

"We were hit." Came B'Elanna's reply as se took began frantically pressing buttons at her station.

"By who?" exclaimed Kathryn as she searched the view screen to find a glimpse of who ever was out there.

"How am I supposed to know?" gasped B'Elanna, she was as much in the dark as the others were.

"This is Sector 001, I am guessing it is Zife and his men." Kathryn announced just as the flyer was hit once more by the invisible force knocking her to the floor.

"Kathryn?" Chakotay asked as he came into the command room of the flyer scanning for his wife.

As Kathryn staggered to her feet she rested her hand on her husbands arm and told him "we were hit just as we arrived in Earth's atmosphere."

All four of them looked out the view screen to see nothing out of the ordinary. "Zife?" Chakotay asked darkly as he looked to Kathryn for answers.

"Maybe." She nodded.

"B'Elanna?" Chakotay snapped as he looked to the half-klingon manning the tactical station.

"I can't find any ships out there to return fire." She told him hopelessly.

"A cloaked ship?" gasped Chakotay who only voiced what they had all been thinking.

"In Earth's orbit? Even Zife isn't _that _crazy" B'Elanna told him shaking her though she was little convinced herself.

"I don't know, it is very important to him if Daryl isn't found." Kathryn told them.

Tom turned once more in his chair and looking Kathryn directly in the eye told her softly with a hint of worry in his voice "Kathryn we are going to have to land."

"No." Growled Chakotay physically stepping in front of Kathryn and looking Tom in the eye.

"Chakotay?" Tom asked the older man feeling slightly confused about what to do.

"No way," insisted a very angry Chakotay "Kathryn can't, not with an unknown cloaked ship out there, and Zife after her, it's too dangerous."

"Tom land this ship." Growled Kathryn in her best command tone giving to her best Janeway death glare and completely ignoring her husband and refusing to give him eye contact.

"Tom." Snapped an angry Chakotay warningly.

"_Now _Tom" Kathryn growled once more still issuing her Janeway death glare.

Tom looked from one determined angry face to another, he was in a dilemma, who's orders should he go with? He saw both points of view, but only one he could go with. After what felt like ages looking from one to the other to took a deep breath, straightened his shoulders turned to Kathryn and with a slow nod and a sense of determination he said, "yes Ma'am"

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"What was that?" Yelled Kathryn as she slammed her hand furiously on the bulkhead.

"What?" Chakotay asked slightly confused as he followed his raging wife into their bedroom on the flyer.

"That!" she screamed pointing at the now closed doors of their sleeping quarters "Don't you ever undermine my authority again." She hissed in a low daring tone.

"Authority? What authority Kathryn?" snapped Chakotay "This isn't some little Starfleet ship you can prance around playing captain in."

"What?" she growled placing her hands on her hips and drawing her eyebrows closer together.

"You heard me. You are not in charge, you don't have any authority." Chakotay stiffly told his any raging wife.

"Don't make this about you Chakotay." He shouted back at him.

"What, my dear Kathryn is that supposed to mean?" he snapped.

"You know exactly what I mean." Came her retort.

Taking a deep breath and stepping away from her raging blue orbs Chakotay turned from her and said deeply "so you insist on going to Earth?"

"Don't stop me Chakotay." Her husky voice came back at him.

Turning on her he looked into her eyes and whispered "Kathryn you know I would do anything to save you from this illness, but does it have to mean I put you in grave risk to save you?"

Before Kathryn even had chance to answer a familiar blue light shimmered around her and took her before Chakotay fully had chance to realise what was happening.

Kathryn Janeway was taken in a transporter beam before the very eyes of her shocked husband.

**Sorry this has taken a while; I got tied up with work and got slightly disheartened with all the slightly negative review and PM's I was getting about this story. I hope people do continue to read on. Thanks.**


	9. Your new boss

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 9.**

**Your new boss.**

"What do you mean by gone?" Gasped Tom as he leaped from his chair as an extremely angry Chakotay announced his wife's disappearance.

Turning to the younger man, jet-black eyes blazing and his fists clenched Chakotay growled "I mean exactly what I just said Tom, Kathryn has _gone."_

"Where? For an afternoon stroll?" joked Tom trying to lighten the mood for he really didn't understand what Chakotay was saying.

"Don't get cocky Tom," snapped Chakotay as he grinded his teeth at the smug looking helmsman. "A trasporter beam took her, I don't know where or where it came from."

"The cloaked ship?" Asked B'Elanna as she too stood to stand with the two men.

"That would be my first guess yes." Sighed a very angry Chakotay but a hint of fear had begun to sweep its way into his mind.

Tom placed a reassuring hand on the broad shoulder of the Native American as he said, "We had better land, and we can try to find out all we can from the surface"

Chakotay slowly turned his worried features to look at the pale faced, blue eyed man as he told him "this is Earth Tom, sector 001, federation and Starfleet headquarters, it's not going to be as easy to find out information."

"Do you have another plan?" Tom asked spreading his arms wide and looking around the worse for wear Delta Flyer "sit here and wait for us to be blown up by an invisible attacker?"

"Just find my wife." Growled Chakotay as he let his eyes meet with Toms and then B'Elanna's in turn.

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"Happy?" came a distinct male voice breaking the deep blackness and freezing cold Kathryn had found herself in for over thirty minutes now.

"Not especially no." she mumbled through her chattering teeth. She was stood against a cold dark wall with her hands bound tightly above her head. She had been stripped of all her clothes except her underwear and a thick blindfold had been placed around her eyes sending her into complete blackness.

"Shut up." Growled the man as the back of his warm hand stuck her across the face. A foul tasting cloth was then shoved aggressively into her mouth and tied tightly creating a crude gag.

The sound of another man immediately jumping to his feet could be heard "gentlemen, gentlemen" heard another man say softly "let us be courteous to our guest."

"She's a lot shorter than I expected." A third slightly high-pitched man piped up.

"She's weak." Growled the first. Kathryn didn't dare move. She had no idea where she was and she could see nothing.

Kathryn felt the cold, sharp side pf a blade being brushed along her stomach and then up to the centre of her bra as tough to cut it off. She set her jaw and stiffened her mussels as she heard the deep voice of a fourth man "you expect me to believe that _this_ disgrace of a female is she who brought Voyager from the Delta Quadrant in only seven years."

The second more gentle spoken man told them "She is Kathryn Elizabeth Janeway, former captain of USS Voyager and wife of the maquis Chakotay."

"She's not worth the trouble." Snapped the high-pitched man.

"She is to be unharmed and unspoiled." Came the second man's gentle voice.

"She's seen the best of her days." The first told them.

The knife was removed from positioned at her bra and was brushed along the line of the scar now gracing her neck "something tells me she hasn't had it easy." The man closest to her welding the knife told them.

"Un-gag her." The gentle voiced man ordered.

Kathryn felt the knife being removed and another man stepping closer to her, he began to run his hands all along her body until he took her hips firmly in his hands and pulled her closer to him saying "you're a pretty little thing aren't you, tell me how do you fair in bed?"

"Never with you." Kathryn hissed back pulling away.

The group of men began to cackle, as the softly spoken man whispered in her ear "don't be too hasty you see my dear it can be arranged with a wave of my hand."

"Where am I?" retorted Kathryn sternly.

"Where we want you to be." Came the simple reply.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"We are who we are." Once more came the reply.

"The Trade?" Kathryn asked.

"Nothing as crude as that, see when we are give orders to kill, we kill." The man laughed as he ran his fingers over her throat where the Trade had cut her.

"Are you working for Zife?" Kathryn asked stiffly thinking of the only reason somebody would want to capture her.

This seemed to interest the men as silence fell all around the room until slowly the first male voice demanded, "what do you know of Zife?"

"I know he wants me dead." She snapped back.

"Dead? Really?" then how can he prove his hybrid is what he claims it is if he kills the mother?" she was asked calmly with a slight hint of a laugh. In there was also a hint of pride that they knew so much of her, something Kathryn did not fail to pick up on.

"Hybrid? Mother?" she whispered shaking her head slowly and drawing her brows closer together in the pretence of being confused.

Several men began to cackle as the softly spoken man who appeared to be in charge told her "oh don't play dumb Ms Janeway it is most unbecoming, you know as well as I you are the mother to a half-cardassian half-human male."

"I don't know what you are talking about." She snapped back.

"No?" squeaked the high-pitched man.

Another man who Kathryn hadn't heard speaking yet joined in "so yourself, your husband Mr. Chakotay, Ms. B'Elanna Torres and her husband Mr. Tom Paris have not spent the last seven months searching the galaxy for your son?"

"No" she whispered back though she feared they knew too much, she was scared now and really didn't like where this was heading, for anyone's sake.

"Then what _have_ you been doing?" she was asked slightly sarcastically.

"An exploring trip between friends." She replied in the hopeless hope that they would believe her.

"You're a fool if you think I will believe that." Came the soft voice of their leader.

"I don't even know who you are." Kathryn retorted truthfully.

"I, my dear madam am your new boss." He told her stepping so close to her she could feel his body heat against her cold naked skin.

"My new boss?" she staggered in confusion.

His hands began to softly run down the naked parts of her body "you are going to do a job for me" the told her with a hint of a laugh in his softly spoken voice. Then suddenly his hands withdrew from her skin as he said "but come now enough of that, rest."

She felt the warmth of the room physically retreating; he was still blindfolded and stood in complete blackness she heard one of the men say roughly "keep an eye on her. That maquis husband of hers is bound to stage a rescue attempt." Then with a cackle he added, "that is as soon as he works out where she is." Kathryn was then plunged into complete cold, dark silence.

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"Well?" The angry Bolian demanded of the frightened looking aid that had just arrived carrying a PADD.

"They are here." He stammered with fear.

"And Janeway?" Zife asked standing to look into the eyes of the terrified young man.

"Not with them." The young man managed to gulp out.

"Where is Janeway?" shouted Zife.

"I think _he _has her." The young aid told his boss as he looked down at the PADD in his hand.

"How?" grimaced Zife "I want to know how he got her before we could"

"Sir?" asked the shocked aid.

Zife rounded on him and looked as though he was about to physically ring his neck as he yelled on the top of his voice "She's not exactly a large lady to capture! Did you not have a plan?"

"Yes sir we did, but we needed them the land before we could execute it."

"And?" growled Zife whose skin seemed to have turned a deep, rich, darker shade of blue with his anger.

"By the time they landed sir, he already had her." The aid told him in a meek voice.

"I assume Mr. Chakotay will stop at nothing to find her." Zife growled as he began to pace the ornately decorated room.

"I assume so sir." Nodded the aid nervously.

"So why are you not following him?" demanded an extremely angry Zife.

"Well sir we lost him." Stammered the young man.

"Lost him?" yelled Zife in such a way that the young man dropped his PADD and nearly fell backwards as the angry Bolian grabbed his shoulders and threw him backwards.

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"That was a close one," growled Tom as he slouched behind a wall.

"Did you see his face?" B'Elanna whispered.

"Trade everywhere." Nodded Tom.

"Do you think it's the trade that have Kathryn?" B'Elanna asked.

"I don't know B'Elanna." Chakotay said as he slowly tried to pear over the bit of wall he was hiding behind.

Tom began to laugh with a big grin on his face as he looked very pleased with himself "what are you laughing at." His wife demanded.

"We got away right under his nose." Tom smiled.

"It was too easy." Came Chakotay's stern voice.

"Chakotay?" B'Elanna asked confused.

"It was too easy, the trade aren't that careless." He told them shaking his head with a look of confusion on his face.

"I don't think Zife is going to be happy with them." Laughed Tom.

"No, it's more than that." Chakotay told him waving his hand in Tom's direction to get him to be quiet so he could think.

"They have Kathryn?" B'Elanna asked.

"No, I don't think so" Chakotay said slowly as he shook his head, "he was shocked when he saw Kathryn wasn't with us, that's why he hesitated, _that's_ why we got away."

Tom and B'Elanna exchanged worried glances and then looked back at Chakotay as Tom said "so if Zife and the Trade don't have her who does?"


	10. The USS Voyager

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 10.**

**The USS Voyager.**

Harry Kim sat in his chair and stared at his old friends with a look of deep confusion across his young features "what do you mean have I noticed anything unusual?"

Tom let out a heavy sigh and hung his head, explaining for what felt to him to be at least the hundredth time "Harry, it's Kathryn, she's gone missing, we are trying to find her."

"What do you mean?" the naive Starfleet Commander asked straightening his red and black uniform jacket with sense of importance.

"Somebody snatched her from the flyer just as we reached Earth's orbit, we don't think it was the Trade." B'Elanna confirmed feel exasperated with the situation.

"I don't know much about the Trade but what makes you think it wasn't them?" Harry asked them feeling slightly worried, any mention of the Trade was a no go as for as he and his straight-laced ways were concerned.

"Chakotay is convinced the Trade were surprised to see Kathryn wasn't with us when we landed." Tom told him awkwardly for he had sensed his old friends nerves.

"But your not convinced?" Harry asked, feeling he was on dangerous ground.

Tom shook his head saying "I don't know what to think, can you help us or not?"

"Without alerting the captain?" Harry said slowly feeling this was dangerous and confusing, too much for him.

"Come on Commander, for Kathryn." Growled B'Elanna.

Harry thought for a long silent moment and then slowly nodded, though he felt he would regret it sometime later "I'll conduct the scan and give you the data, after that your own your own."

"Tanks a lot." Hissed B'Elanna not at all hiding her sarcasm and annoyance.

"Come on B'Elanna I am still Starfleet, I want to keep my career." Insisted Harry as he stood to meet his friend who was now stood up.

B'Elanna stared at him angrily leaving nobody in doubt the half-klingon was annoyed. Tom stood to join his wife and old friend, quickly he put a hand on his wife's shoulder saying "Lay off him Lanna, it's what Kathryn wanted, all her crew to pursue what ever path they wished." As he guided his wife to leave their old friend he said, "Seriously, thanks Harry."

"Tom" Harry called after him.

"Yea?"

"It's good to see you again." Harry told him.

"You too Harry." Tom nodded before he and his wife were gone into the night.

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"I know nothing of a storage device." The cold and steady voice of the former Borg drone announced.

"I think you do." Mike Ayala told her as he stood the other side of the force field looking in at where the prisoner stood in all her slender beauty and younger distinct features.

Seven of Nine raised a silver eyebrow as she looked down at the shorter man and asked, "who sent you to find this device?"

"Maybe it is me who wants it." Mike told her stiffly, he knew it was a long shot she would believe him but couldn't help thinking it was worth a try.

"It was Kathryn Janeway who sent you here." Seven told him directly and matter of fact.

"What makes you so sure of that?" Mike asked her as he unblinkingly stared at Seven's deep blue eyes that reminded him so much of Kathryn's.

"The information that device holds is pivotal to her healing." The half-Borg told him unashamedly.

Mike's lips curved into a crooked smile as he folded his arms and told her "So you do know what device I am talking about."

Again with the raising of her silver eyebrow the straight backed and tall Borg asked, "do you know what information it holds?"

Mike who had no idea what information the device holds was taken aback for a second before shaking his head and saying "I trust Chakotay."

"Trust is irrelevant." Seven snapped back at him.

"But the contents of this device is?" Mike asked her, his chest pounding, had he got himself involved in more than he had bargained for?

"To those who care for Kathryn Janeway, yes." Seven told him in her monotone voice and then asked him a question that made him think of something he had never thought of thinking of at all "What do you know of Ms. Janeway's past?"

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"Where is she?" Shrieked Phoebe Janeway, her arms flying everywhere, her eyes blazing and tears streaming down her face.

"Phoebe darling calm down" Owen Paris begged as he tried to grab hold of the now hysterical young woman while shooting a disgusted look at their uninvited guest.

"Owen I can't" shrieked Kathryn's little sister.

Owen turned calmly to face his unannounced guest at his home as he said stiffly "we trusted you Chakotay, seven months you have been gone and seven months we have taken care of your children, and you return without Katie."

Chakotay grinded his teeth, Owens words had angered him but he would not let his anger show in front of Kathryn's upset little sister. "I intend to get her back, but I need your help," insisted Chakotay as he met Owens eyes. Then slowly he turned to Phoebe saying "both of you."

"This had better be good." She yelled at him but flopped down in her chair to listen almost as though she had winded all the fighting energy out of herself.

"What has this go to do with?" Owen asked though he dreaded the answer and was already sure he knew it, this day was coming, only a matter of time.

"Owen your already messed up in this so don't play the innocent." Growled an angry Chakotay in a low under tone.

"I know what you are getting at, and you just wait a minute." Snapped Owen stepping between Chakotay and Phoebe not wanting the young woman to what he had done to her sister many years ago. 

Phoebe looked from Owen to Chakotay, confusion and fear was beginning to mount in her as she asked slowly "Owen?"

"You sent her in there, did you know then of Zife's plan?" Chakotay asked stiffly not breaking eye contact with Owen Paris and completely ignoring to confused expressions of Kathryn's little sister.

"What is he talking about?" Phoebe asked almost horrified as she looked from Chakotay to Owen. Like her older sister she respected Owen as a surrogate father.

Owen and Chakotay did not break eye contact and once more Chakotay growled through bared teeth "Did you know Owen?"

"Did he know what?" shrieked Phoebe who was by now feeling very confused and hysterical with the situation.

Without breaking eye contact with the broad Native American before him Owen waved his hand in the direction of the younger woman and hissed "Phoebe please."

"Tell her," snapped Chakotay "tell her how you sent Kathryn into a trap."

Owen stepped close to Chakotay and whispered in his ear "no matter what you may think of me, please don't tarnish Edwards memory for his girls." Then stepping back with a slight grin on his face he said, "Kathryn wouldn't want you to do that." And as Owen predicted, that got Chakotay's attention.

(+)(+)(+)(+)

"Now I assume you don't like Zife much?" the kind male asked.

"I don't know him" Kathryn replied simply, tilting her head a little in the direction of the voice. Kathryn had been held for several days, she had been given clothes and a more comfortable environment but had been blindfolded every time somebody came to talk to her. All she had seen was the tiny room she was held captive in, not enough to determine where she was or who her captors were.

"But you have met?" the man pressed on with his questioning.

"Our paths have crossed, yes" she replied taking note that the man kept his distance, this time at least.

"He was responsible for that disgusting scar on you neck?" came the next question in almost a gentle whisper.

"Not Zife personally, no" she told him with a hint of a sly tone to her voice.

With a slight laugh the man corrected himself "but he did employ the person who gave it to you?"

"It is my understanding they were a member of the Trade." Kathryn told him stiffly "who the Trade's boss is, well your guess is as good as mine."

"Playing it safe? I can do that." The man told her but Kathryn didn't miss the slight hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Indeed" was all Kathryn replied with raising her eyebrows above the blackening blindfold as she did which only anger the man further.

"What do you want on Earth Ms Janeway?" he snapped getting straight to the point of his line of questioning.

"Earth? It's my home planet, my husband's children are here, as well my sister and most of my friends." As all Kathryn supplied, which was of course information he all ready knew.

"Your husbands children? Not your children?" the male asked trying to entice her into anger.

"No, their mother is Chakotay's previous wife Seven of Nine." She stated coolly with an unwavering husky voice.

"The Borg drone currently in Federation custody for the attempted murder of yourself." The man told her and then in a deep and questioning voice simply said "Mike Ayala?"

"What about him?" she asked slightly unsure where the sudden change in questioning had come from.

"You know him?" the man said, leaving Kathryn slightly unsure if it was meant as a statement or a question.

Playing it safe she nodded and told him "he was a lieutenant on Voyager."

"One of several maquis crew members to serve under you on Voyager." The man told her, which of course she already knew.

"Indeed." Came her reply, Kathryn was still unsure where this was heading and knew she had to play it safe before she got anybody into trouble.

"Is Mr Ayala close to Seven of Nine?" she was asked stiffly.

"I don't keep checks on the friendships of my crew" Kathryn retorted.

"Apparently not, otherwise you would have known your husband was having an affair with your chief Borg." Retorted a clearly infuriated questioner.

"What has that got to do with Mike?" Kathryn asked coolly.

"Well it seems a little odd, after all this time Mike Ayala pay's Seven of Nine a visit in prison." He told her coldly "the exact same day you and your little convoy return to Earth with a stolen Delta Flyer." Kathryn decided it was best at this point to keep her mouth shut as he continued "an hour later Seven of Nine disappears, along with half of Voyagers previous crew, Owen Paris, your younger sister Phoebe Janeway and Chakotay's children"

"Disappeared?" she asked coolly trying to understand if he meant they had been taken by the trade of where in hiding.

"You _know _where they have taken it." He hissed and was physically in front of her with in seconds.

Kathryn was at this point completely lost, "it?" she asked in true confusion.

"Yes Janeway, Voyager" he growled at her.

"Voyager? As in –" she began as she was at this point confused about exactly what Chakotay was planning to do with a rusty old museum piece.

"The USS Voyager, snatched right from the museum" the man interrupted her confirming her confused fears.

"Oh!" was all Kathryn gasped; she really was at a loss as to what the plan was now.

**So here was the next chapter, but to be honest I am not sure I want to continue, the amount of negative and disheartening reviews and PM's I am having over this makes me think there is little point continuing. I had an idea in my head, part of that idea is the reader wouldn't know all of what was going on at the start but it will unravel as the story progress's. I have been having negative PM's about this and so I am not sure I want to continue, I don't know how to write the story idea I have any other way, and there is no point writing if the readers don't like the way I write the story.**


	11. Kathryn is missing

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 11.**

**Kathryn is missing**

**Just a short chapter, more very soon.**

Chakotay sat in his usual chair on Voyagers now out dated bridge and it felt good. He hadn't sat there for a long time and now he realised how much he missed it. As he watched Earth spiral away from him in the view screen he still sat in awe of how they had managed to pull it off. With a dimpled smile he rose from his seat to move toward where Tom sat with his back to him at the helm, much as Kathryn used to when they rode Voyager through the Delta Quadrant. The thought of Kathryn sent pain into his heart. With a large gulp Chakotay dared a glance at the now empty captains chair, her chair. Mike Ayala who was manning Tuvok tactical station caught his dear friends eyes as he looked up from his wife's famous chair. "Any one following us Mike?" Chakotay asked the former maquis.

Mike diverted his attention back to his console, tapped a few buttons and then announced so that the whole bridge could here him "no" the way he said it gave Chakotay reason for concern.

"Mike?" the Native American warrior asked moving towards the tactical station he knew so well.

Mike looked Chakotay right in the eye as he told him "that's what worries me. We stole a guarded artefact right from the heart of federation headquarters and simply glided out of sector 001 without any opposition, from anybody.

"We got lucky" grinned Tom with a shrug.

Mike looked down at him and said slowly with out wanting to look at Chakotay "exactly, but what if Kathryn wasn't so lucky."

At Mike's words Chakotay stiffened and Tom looked puzzled. "Think about it" continued Mike "nobody comes after us, nobody tires to stop us, but they all ready have Kathryn"

"We don't know who has my wife" snapped Chakotay.

"Right" agreed Mike "but we don't think it is the Trade, so it's not Zife"

"But the Trade saw we didn't have her when we arrived in the Delta Flyer" Chakotay reminded him.

"Exactly" nodded Mike "so the Trade, run by Zife who happened to be president of the Federation know she's not here and who ever has her knows she's not here so who does that leave to follow us? we got away because nobody cares about us, they _want _Kathryn."

Chakotay thought for a moment, in many ways what Mike was telling him made sense and in other ways it just didn't matter.

"But they have her, so where does that leave her?" piped up Naomi from the science station.

"So what are they doing to her?" asked Tom.

"I don't know, but surely they know we will try to get her back." Snapped Chakotay, suddenly there was a knot in his stomach, he didn't like this, he didn't like this one bit. When nobody answered her turned to Tom and directly told him "you have the coordinates, get us there as fast as you can." And with that he turned to leave the bridge.

"Where are you going?" Mike asked as he passed him to enter the turbo lift.

Chakotay didn't even turn to his old friend as he growled, "the brig, I have a prisoner to question." And with that Chakotay was inside the turbolift and the doors had swished shut.


	12. Kathryn's son

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 12.**

**Kathryn's son.**

"Never" hissed Kathryn as she violently shook her head. She was blindfolded once more and talking to her lead captor.

"It's easy, let him capture you and then kill him" came the man calm voice.

"Never" hissed Kathryn once more.

The man stepped closer to her and growled in her ear "The Kathryn Janeway I have been watching for the past months would do it, she was a rouge, she ran with the pack, where is that Kathryn?"

"I would never kill another," she told him straight.

"Your husband has" the man said in cold dry voice.

Kathryn's heart pounded, all of Starfleet just like any in the military have killed, but it was almost ignored, she herself had killed as a Starfleet officer but killing in cold blood, murder, never would she do that. But the man now watching her on the other side of her blindfold was right Chakotay had killed, murdered. His beginnings in the maquis were not the fair rights and humanitarian way he showed as a call leader when he arrived on Voyager. Kathryn thought how to choose her words carefully, to one not deny the truth, to two allow Chakotay not to tarnished as a murder and for him to be recognised as the brave warrior her was fighting for what he believe in, she decided to go for the simple answer, "my husband was once a maquis cell leader."

The man snorted slightly as her skimmed reply and asked her "you were never maquis, even after the cardassians did what they did to you, why is that? Or is it you were in league with them to create your son?"

Kathryn's heart stopped a beat at those words, still blindfolded but sat comfortable and fully clothed she asked almost in horror but begging "what do you know of my son?"

"More than you know." Came his reply.

Kathryn was getting agitated now "what the hell is that supposed to mean?" she snapped at him, she had been there for days, well treated yes, well fed, but whenever she was talked to the room they kept her in was blacked and somebody came from behind and blindfolded her, she had not seen anybody since her capture, after they had finished talking with her the blindfold was removed but the lights only returned when the room was emptied of people once more.

"I need to know, where did your son come from?" he asked her calmly completely ignoring her question or the sharp tone in which she asked it.

Kathryn thought for a moment before she asked them smugly "Come from? What are to talking about? I would be happy to give you a lesson on reproductive biology if that's what you're talking about."

"Janeway, you want to watch what you offer to people." He told her with a deep hint of laughter in his voice, when she did not reply, apparently unaware of what her words had sounded like though they were similar to her words to Chakotay on the bridge the day Sam Wildman had announced her pregnancy. With out a reply from the tiny woman before him the man burst into laughter as he told her "I like you, a lot more than I thought I would."

"I am glad" Kathryn told him stiffly and coldly, she did not sound glad, she didn't sound glad at all.

There was a long pause, Kathryn who was sat blindfolded in complete blackness still began to wonder if she was alone once more, she was about to call out when he asked her in a very quiet and gentle voice "your son, did you name him? Did you hold him? Why did you give him up?"

Hurriedly Kathryn insisted, "I didn't give him up! I fought all I could to keep him!"

"It wasn't enough." The man growled deeply at her.

"No it wasn't," she admitted sadly as she hung her head. The she asked, "Who are you, why do you care so much for my son?"

After another long pause the man asked once more in a gentler voice "did you name him? What did you name him?"

Kathryn raised her head slowly and said "yes, yes I did" then took her own pause before saying "not at first, it was many, many years later" then hurriedly with a slight shrug she said "he may never know what I named him, of course he will all ready have a name but-"

"But as his mother you named him" the man cut across her with a kind tone of voice.

"Yes" Kathryn nodded. She couldn't help feeling this man understood her and she couldn't think why.

"I would very much like to hear his name, tell me what did his mother name her son?" he asked her softly, to Kathryn it felt as though he had moved very close to her.

As if jumping from a trance she pulled away slightly and demanded, "Who are you?"

The man chose to ignore her question but did ask, "You love him don't you?"

"Yes, he is my son" she insisted without hesitation or question.

"Then tell me, why do you go looking for him now, all these years later now because you want something from him? Never before did you search for him." The man asked her in only a slight accusatory tone.

"The dominion war, he's cardassian, the federation fought Cardassia. After that I was in the Delta Quadrant, and later a federation prison." Kathryn said softly in her own defence. "My husband, Chakotay, it's in his strength I can do it." Her head panged when she thought of Chakotay, she never thought she would be separated from him again.

"Your husband the maquis, why does he look for the Cardassian-Human hybrid?" the man asked her in his own slightly defensive tone.

There was something about the way he had said 'the' that set Kathryn on edge "_the _Cardassian-Human hybrid?" she asked.

"Yes, you didn't think there was more than one did you?" he asked her slightly shocked, "it's unheard of, there is only one, your son."

"You seem to know much of my son." Kathryn stated thought it was loaded question.

"You don't deny your son." He stated with words almost of respect.

"Why would I do that?" she questioned in horror.

"Many would if their son be who yours is." He told her truthfully.

"And who is that?" she asked almost not wanting to say her son was any different to any other man.

"Half-cardassian" he said almost in disgust.

In her son's defence Kathryn stepped in "my son is my son, my flesh and blood, I may not have been there for him, I may not have been the mother I could have been but I am his mother."

"Most would deny that," the man told her truthfully.

"Not I" she replied clearly and distinctly.

"That is risky Ms Janeway, to admit to being the mother of such a man"

In her sons defence and without hesitation Kathryn announced, "he is my son, I will not deny that"

"And if he chose to deny you as his mother?" the man asked her what she had often pondered should she ever meet him.

"Then that would be his choice, I can not deny him that." She said knowing that would be extremely painful but it had to be his choice to make and a chance she would have to take.

Suddenly almost as a subject change like the man couldn't bare to talk of Kathryn's son he said coldly "and I ask you to kill Zife yet you will not."

"No I will not" she once more insisted.

"Why is that? For all that Zife has put you through these many years." The man reminded her.

With a heavy slightly unconvincing voice Kathryn said "Zife has been out of my life until these last few months."

"You lie and you know it" her captor growled at her "Zife visited you in the federation prison after he ensured you were put there."

After a long pause she shook her head and told him extremely sarcastically "oh no, did you know hear, it was a plea bargain."

Kathryn's captor became angered at her words as he snapped and hissed "Zife forced your hand, he backed you into a nice neat little corner with no choice out and you squirmed, you played right into his hand and did exactly what he wanted you to do, and went down for fifteen years for a shame crime"

"This is all true but I will not kill him" Kathryn insisted once more.

With a deep grown he said "you may li-" but was abruptly interrupted by the sound of a door being flung open and footsteps moving towards the two.

"Sir" squeaked the high-pitched man Kathryn had heard on her first day their.

"What?" hissed her interrogator clearly annoyed at being interrupted.

At this point Kathryn who was still tightly blindfolded and couldn't see a thing hear scuffling and a whimpered voce. Then her interrogator called out almost in shock "where?"

"What's going on?" asked a blindfolded Kathryn.

A firm hand pulled her to her feet and guided her towards where the door had opened "Your coming with me"

"What?" Kathryn asked almost shocked and trying to dig her feet into the ground.

"We are taking a little trip," she was told.

"A trip?" she questioned as he tried to pull her with him but she was stranger than she looked, more so than he had guessed.

"Yes, in a starship, you like a starship wont you" he told her with a laugh.

"Where are we going?" Kathryn demanded.

Then the cold drawl of another man rung in Kathryn's ears causing horror as he said "Cardassia Prime"

"What?" She shrieked and tried to pull away.


	13. The past of Annika Hansen

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 13.**

**The past of Annika Hansen.**

The two stared in silence at each other for a long time. The stiff tanned Native American had entered the brig many minutes ago; he stood and stared at his prisoner who simply stared back. She was thin, very thin, her long blonde hair fell uncharacteristically down her back her blue eyes held her piercing stare. The silver above her left eye reminded all that she still was not quite human. It was Chakotay who broke the silence with his words, "it has been a while."

"Indeed" came her sharp reply, still she did not falter her gaze from his jet-black eyes.

With a heavy sigh Chakotay tried once more to make conversation "how have you been?"

"Working at optimum efficiency." Came her sharp and straight to the point reply.

Infuriated Chakotay snapped "damn it Seven, I am really trying here."

"Trying to do what?" she asked raising the aforementioned silver eyebrow.

Stiffening once more Chakotay talked through gritted teeth, really trying hard to keep civil with his ex-wife "we were married for fifteen years can we not at least try to get along?" he asked.

She returned him with a deep stare until she said in her monotone voice "it was my understanding you were unable to befriend me because it was I who caused your current wife to be thermally ill"

"Seven please" hissed Chakotay, something about the way in mentioned Kathryn being ill and her being responsible for it angered him, maybe the fact she seemed completely cold about the whole idea.

"You don't like me much." Seven stated simply and coldly in reply to that.

"Seven it's not that" Chakotay told her truthfully.

Seven stepped even closer to the force field keeping him from her and waiting till she held his jet-black eyes in here gaze and then told him "I question why you had offspring with me and why you married me if you were in love with Kathryn Janeway."

"In love with Kathryn," stammered Chakotay, he had always wanted to hide from seven that he had loved Kathryn from before he and Seven were together. The firm and unwavering look from Seven told him it was wrong to lie to her and that he wasn't fooling her and so he asked simply "you knew?"

Turning from his she said in a much softer voice, a voice Chakotay had hardly heard from the tall woman before him "not at first, for a long time I believed you loved me."

Chakotay's heart skipped a beat, it was the first time his wife of fifteen years and mother to his children had ever talked of love in that way. Chakotay waited Seven for a second and he pitied her. She had been taken at six years old and made to be Borg. In her mid twenties Kathryn and he came along and ripped her from the Borg life she had come to call her own and had told her it was wrong. Kathryn had taken the decision to force her to accept her humanity, a humanity she would never fully have and yet she was not Borg either. Then years later she tried to express her humanity through intimate relationships, she had chosen him. He not being the gentleman he should have slept with her through his own anger with the woman he loved. That action alone had let Seven believe he loved her, by fathering a daughter with her and marring her, he had let that belief continue, ultimately he had let her down, could she be to blame? With a deep sigh and heavy heart he told her truthfully "I cared for you."

Chakotay saw for the first time in a long time emotion in the face of Seven of Nine, pain, hurt and even a hint of disappointment "you never loved me?"

"Not in the way you hoped I would." He told her truthfully as he watched her closely.

"It was not a hope," she whispered softly.

A deep pang of guilt fell into Chakotay's heart and he found his anger at Seven was washing away; he story was a tragic one, probably just as tragic as Kathryn's really. Deciding that he would try his best to put the past behind he turned to he and said in a deep yet calm voice "I came to tell you our Children are on board"

Seven's head snapped up and she looked at him with a mixture of disgust and confusion "you brought them here?" she asking in her usual Borg tone.

Chakotay nodded and said in a gentle loving voice "I want to ask if you would join me in my quarters this evening to share a meal with our children?"

"I am in this Brig, I am your prisoner." She retorted back to him.

"I don't want to force you to come." He told her horrified that she seemed to think that just because she was his prisoner he would force her to come. Chakotay did have to smile a little, this conversation reminded him of the day he first realised he was in love with Kathryn, for she had come to see him when he were her prisoner in the very same Brig she had invited him to her quarters for a meal, that unexpected act of kindness had talked so much to him of love and the kind of person she were and he hope his actions now would do the sae for Seven.

"You are an incompetent father" she retorted back to him.

Seven's sharp and insulting words caught Chakotay off guard "I beg your pardon?" he asked horrified that she would say such a thing.

"You risk the lives of our children to bring them on this mission, you are not fit to be a father." Seven told him.

"How dare you." He growled at her, his anger rising.

"I am not the one about to fly our children to Cardassia Prime in search of a rouge sect of Cardassian's." She told him.

"You assured me there was no risk to go there," he growled at her in response.

Seven's blue eyes met his raging Jet-black eyes as she told him "there is always a risk, what a bad example you are for your children."

"And you think trying to kill their new step mother is a wonderful example?" he hissed at her retorting back to her example as a mother and the reason she was in prison.

Seven's silvery eyebrow raised and she arms folded "I did what I had to do for the sake of my collective, I did not deliver them into the waiting hands of the Cardassians or the Borg."

Chakotay was about to point out he had not delivered their children into the waiting hands of the Cardassians for they were safely on board Voyager when it hit him what all this was about and where her anger was coming from "this is not about me and our children or Cardassia Prime, this is about you and your parents and the Borg." He told her, he watched her closely and knew he was right for at his words she flinched. Calmly he said "this is about a six year old girl by the name of Annika Hansen." For it suddenly dawned on Chakotay, Seven too had a past, a past she needed dealing with.


	14. The only one

**Note to readers: - To those of you who have reviewed in the last months, thank you! I do intend to finish this story; I did not stop due to the negative reviews…**

**Real life work commitments and other things lead to me having no Internet access as I am spending time in Africa over the next few months.**

**This will mean there could be a number of weeks wait between chapters but I will try my best to get access the Internet and have it done soon.**

**Thank you for you patience, I hope you still continue to enjoy and don't get too put off.**

**I shall try to get 2 or 3 more chapters up in the next day or so.**

**Thanks. X**

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 14**

**The only one**

"Well?" The leader of the secret sect called the Trade asked as one of his followers timidly entered his grand office.

"We lost her." Squeaked the extremely high-pitched voice of his small male follower.

"We don't even know if they have her." The Bolian leader stated simply without even taking the time to glance up at his tiny human who was watching him closely.

Sifting his weight nervously from one foot to the other the tiny man squeaked, "She wasn't with Chakotay"

That had got his attention and in tern had earned the small man a glare. "Well were is Chakotay?" Zife asked in a warning tone that the next news should be good news.

"We… er… we don't know." Squeaked the now very worried man.

"How can you not know where he is, surely you kept him in sight?" bellowed Zife now pulling himself to his full height and glaring at the much taller man.

There was a tiny terrified squeak from his subordinate from which the words "not exactly" were distinguishable

"By not exactly I assume you mean no you did not?" demanded Zife.

"No" squeaked the little ma.

"Do you not realise that man will stop at nothing until he gets his wife back?" Zife demanded as he paced the for in anger "if you want to find Kathryn Janeway you follow Chakotay."

"He has Voyager," insisted the small man.

Zife rounded on the unfortunate fellow as he growled, "Voyager is an out dated intrepid class ship, don't you dare tell me the Trade are no match for such a ship."

"Why do we want her anyway?" questioned the little man.

"That is not your concern" Zife hissed through gritted teeth and then adding off handily "it is to do with who her son is"

"So you intended to kill her?"

"What would you have me do?" asked Zife almost compassionately "I had her forced into prison but as soon as she is released she _goes looking _for him" the turning back to his angry self he snapped "I gave her a chance"

"Why does it matter anyway?" questioned the squeaky man trying to get the attention off Zifes anger.

"Because her son holds the key to all of the federations darkest days," muttered Zife almost under his breath.

"So it's her son we need to kill not her." The small, older man told her.

"Why are you so obsessed with saving Janeways life?" Zife demanded suddenly.

"I admire all who achieve what she has, you're a fool if you don't" the small man admitted.

Zife snorted shook his head and said, "You my old friend are the fool"

"Janeway should be respected, there are few who could achieve what she has."

"There is only one cardassian-human hybrid and only one mother." Zife pointed out solemnly.

"And you would kill her?" came the high-pitched question.

"I don't want to, but she left me no choice, I warned her, I forced her in to prison for her own protection and went to see her there, I told her she can never search for and find her son."

"And now he has found her?" came the slow squeaky question.

"She went looking for him, he knew that." Pointed out Zife.

"How did he know that Janeway is his mother?"

It was then that Zife made a statement that made little sense to the small squeaky man who clearly just wanted to leave; "guilt is a powerful thing, it will make any man buckle under it, Owen Paris didn't stand a chance without Edward Janeway to back him up."

"But as soon as she finds out her son is the one who has her-" began the small man trying to work it out in his head.

"I don't think he will force his only leverage straight away." Interrupted Zife.

"He _looks_ human"

"That_ thing_ is nether human nor cardassian, I don't ever want to hear you say that again." Yelled Zife in a sudden fit of rage.


	15. Nightmares relived

**Well here we go, another update. Readers please do accept my sincere apologies, simply real life has gotten in my way of this story but slowly and surely I am finishing it! Thank you for you patience.**

**The beginning will be the end of all things.**

**Chapter 15**

**Nightmares relived.**

"Well?" her capture demanded.

Kathryn heard a shuffle as a smaller man moved forward and with a squeak in his voice he announced, "It was Zife."

"What was Zife?" demanded Kathryn though she knew she was in no position to demand anything.

"Yes or no Janeway that's all I need to know." Hissed her captor in her ear, his warm breath skimming her cheek.

"What?" she asked, she had been on the starship for a day, she could tell by the vibrations of the engine they had been moving at high warp but now they were slowing.

"Will you do what I asked or not?" he captor asked sharply.

"No" she snapped without a pause.

The small man squeaked, "He would sooner kill you."

"He's scared" Kathryn admitted.

"Of who? You?" jarred her captor with a deep laugh.

"But you want to keep me alive, otherwise I would be dead all ready." She pointed out bringing silence to the room.

"My dear Janeway, I admire you." The small man with the squeaky voice told her.

Kathryn snorted for a second then stopped and said in her deep husky voice "you can admire a person you murder"

"You have to start trusting me." Her main captor told her abruptly.

Kathryn thought for a moment and then said rather roughly in reply "that is difficult considering you hold me captive and I don't know who you are."

"That is for safety reasons." The small man squeaked.

"Why then are you going to Cardassia Prime?" she demanded.

There was a lot of shuffling and murmuring, which Kathryn couldn't work out until she was told, "the Maquis husband of you is going there."

"What?" demanded feeling slightly horrified, "why would he go there?"

"He thinks you are there." He captor told her.

"Why would he think that?" her husky voice insisted to know.

There was silence for a long while as Kathryn contemplated what she was told, Chakotay had gone all the way to Cardassia Prime, right under the nose of Zife, if she knew Zife, and their paths had crossed more than she cared to like she knew he wouldn't just let Chakotay go like that. "It's a trap." She said simply "zife has set it."

"No" squeaked the small man with a slight laugh, "Zife is furious, Chakotay got away."

"Kill him," her captor demanded once more.

"Why?" she hissed back in complete insistence "why are you so worried about me killing Zife."

"Because of what he did to us." He captor exploded as though a temper had just risen far more than he meant it too.

"To us?" she asked softly.

"I know it was Zife who sold you to the Cardassians and paid for them to create a Human-Cardassian Hybrid." He captor growled in disgust "I know he is scared that his dirty little secret will get out. When you went missing in action he was home free, then your doctor arrives and ruins it all for him. When your pretty little self went and flew her history making starship right into Sector 001 he was terrified, and you know the rest."

"How did that affect you?" she demanded.

There was a lot of shuffling then the squeaky man said "no! We can't she will know."

"Do it." demanded her main captor.

Kathryn braced herself to fight; she had no idea what was about to happen. Then suddenly her blindfold was removed and her eyes thrust into light. She clenched them shut for the panging for the bright light, after a few seconds she was able to force them open and got ready to fight, but no body was fighting her, all we watching her closely. All were human. Then from behind her Kathryn heard the deep voice of her main captor, the leader "Look at me Janeway" quickly Kathryn turned to look at the man stood before her and in horror and fear which overcome her she backed away as she came face to face with her deepest darkest past.


	16. A longing for peace

**THE BEGINNING WILL BE THE END OF ALL THINGS.**

**CHAPTER 16**

**A LONGING FOR PEACE**

**Thanks to all my great readers, thanks for sticking with me! I am back for good! No long disappearances! I will have this fan fiction finished very soon! Thanks for your dedication in reading! **

There he stood broad back, broad shoulders and a clenched fist. "You?" questioned Kathryn so very taken aback she wasn't sure what to think.

"You know me?" he asked her stiffly not moving his eyes from hers.

Kathryn's eyebrows raised and her heart thumped in her chest "you were there, all those years ago, you held me captive then, just as you do now." Kathryn told her Cardassian captor.

"Please don't think me evil." The cardassian asked simply "I am a kind man, my name is Kirack, and I knew your son."

"My son." Whispered Kathryn, her heavy burdened heart relaxing a little.

"Yamack as we named him, I raised him as my own." He assured her simply.

Yamack." Kathryn whispered "please tell me of him, where is he now."

Kirack turned from her his head bowed low it was a while before he said a word, when he did speak he talked in a deep and yet gentile voice, far more gentile than Kathryn had expected from an old Cardassian warrior. "It brings me great grief to tell you of Yamack-Daryl's death."

"Death?" Kathryn asked.

"There are those of us who hated what our kin's men did, those of us who wanted peace. We were the rouges, the misunderstood, those who were seen as _weak _because of that we were easy targets, the Cardassian race are born warriors."

Kathryn watched him, his sadness and grief evident on his face, "so my son was a man of peace?"

"In some ways as his mother is." Kirack told her.

She tilted her head and let her eyes meet his as she asked with half a smile "what makes you think I am a woman of peace?"

"You clung to Starfleet when not one person would blame you for joining the Maquis."

In defence of Chakotay and many of her friends Kathryn insisted "many of the Maquis are people of peace, they simply defended themselves from the Cardassian tyranny."

Kirack looked at her carefully for a while before his stiffly stated "one man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist. I do not dispute your husband is a man of peace. Captain Chakotay, captain of the Val Jean is known and respected among our group."

"Yes highly respected." Squeaked the little man whom Kathryn had even forgotten was there.

Quickly turning to the small man she searched his face for even a tiny hint or sarcasm, when she found none she turned her eyes back to Kirack who was equally not being sarcastic.

"You respect Chakotay?" Kathryn asked clearly not believing what he said "even though he was your enemy in the war."

"The Cardassians were our enemy, I stood by and watch what they did to you and countless other women and it sickened me."

"And my son?" Kathryn asked deeply.

"Yamack vowed to find the human woman who brought him into this world and to claim himself as human."

Kathryn thought she was going to be sick, she had never thought of this, it was at times like this she longed to have Chakotay at her side, her own brave angry warrior.

"So what is it you want from me?" she demanded changing her tone to a firm angry voice.

Kirack stated sharply "kill Zife"

"No" stated Kathryn "and if you are men of peace as you claim you would never kill another, even one like Zife."

"At least she has him scared." Squeaked the small man.

"Only because he doesn't know Yamack is dead." Reminded Kirack. With a heavy sigh he added "when we get to Cardassia Prime and reunite with Voyager we can assess the situation then." Walking towards the door Kirack signalled for his men to follow him he turned to Kathryn, nodded and said "Until then Ms. Janeway." And with that they were gone.


	17. Chapter 17

It has come to my attention that I have a number of unfinished stories on here, I am currently one by one going through them to update and finish them all. Thank You for your continued support. This story will be finished soon.

Yours,

Jo, Hopping Hamster. x


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